I was browsing around thru old articles last night and all the agreements made between SEC, ESPN, tu and LHN etc etc. Everything of course just points to 2024/25 where everything changes. Interesting to see that if tu leaves a conference, ESPN will have a window to handle their rights however they see fit. So obviously this is where ESPN can get out of the LHN. But I found it a little harder to understand where the money was that made this good for the SEC especially since they've already agreed on a deal with ESPN for the exclusive rights thru 2033 or whatever. Like, if you already made the deal, why does adding those 2 schools suddenly require Disney to go back to the table with you. And that's not really where the money is. A 10 million bump or whatever doesn't seem like much. But the forward thinking here (at the very least, in their eyes) by the SEC is being properly set up for the 12 team CFP. That's where the big money will be for the SEC. Speculation is that the 12 team playoff will come with around a billion dollar payout to the teams involved. So the more quality or potential quality teams you have get in, the more money everyone makes. There was going to be a BIG grab for conferences to get as big as they can to have the most teams in the playoff. If you go back to last season and it was a 12 team playoff, the SEC would have had 5 teams (or 4? off the top of my head) in the CFB playoff. If you had OU that's 6 and Iowa State was the other big 12, that arguably should have been tu if they knew how to hire coaches and that would be 7. Obviously, there record wouldn't have been the same if playing an SEC schedule but that's where realignment comes later in the paragraph but the bias is there to have either of them put in the CFP simply because of who they are, and where they are. We've seen how quickly teams like Texas, Ohio State and ND etc skyrocket up the polls as soon as they string together 3 wins. SEC can use that much like the big 10 has done for years. And if the big 10 grabs them before the SEC can, you won't find 2 other schools worth adding to help you take more CFP spots. The ACC just isn't going to lose any of those schools. So, big 10 would come out making more money. And it's not just about the TV deal, it is how many teams you can potential get in the dance. That's why super conferences finally make sense, the playoff. That's the money. Getting more teams in the CFP gets everyone more money. And if you are smart, you get all the quality teams you can and let your reputation alone get you teams in. The west looks a little weaker than the east when they move Alabama and Auburn to the east but think about how smart that is. You make A&M, tu and ou have an easier path to more wins so you've got at least 3 teams to potentially get in every year. If tu or OU is down, whomever finished higher in the east gets in instead and ESPN will still pitch those quality wins against tu and even OU and you're naive to think these things don't factor into how they take teams. Why do you think ND got in over A&M? You gotta go off something. In the west, and you let the reputation of the gauntlet that is the SEC west that can get maybe 4 teams in. Making it easier on OU and tu just helps everyone. If the SEC can get 5 or 6 teams in the CFP every season, you take half the pot every single team. At least. Going from 3-4 teams in to 5 or 6 or hell, maybe every once in awhile 7??? That's where the money is.
Anyway I'm just waiting for my tire to be fixed so I killed some time spitting this out
TL;DR the money is in the 12 team CFP and maximizing your participants with the best "available" teams before the big10 or any other conference can. They are cornering the playoff market